Sport
7 March, 2024
The new buzz of gold hits town this weekend
WEDDERBURN will be abuzz this weekend for the town’s annual Minelab Detector Jamboree - 21st century gold hunters will be back in search of tokens buried at Hard Hill Tourist Reserve and trying their hand at goldpanning. Some will be hearty...
WEDDERBURN will be abuzz this weekend for the town’s annual Minelab Detector Jamboree - 21st century gold hunters will be back in search of tokens buried at Hard Hill Tourist Reserve and trying their hand at goldpanning.
Some will be hearty veterans of the event organised through the town’s tourism committee, others will make their debut at one of Victoria’s most respected gold festivals.
They will camp at the historic reserve and enjoy the hospitality onsite that Wedderburn Lions Club is renowned for providing and they will venture down to the main street where local businesses, including Wedderburn Hotel, are gearing up for one of the busiest weekends of the year.
Organiser Karen Fazzani said this year’s Junior Gold Panning completion sponsored by the Inglewood and Districts Community Bank will be held on the Saturday.
She said the Minelab Senior Detector token hunt to commence daily from 8am. First prize a Minelab GPX 5000 detector valued $4999 with other prizes donated by Coiltek, Wedderburn Tourism, regional and local businesses.
“Saturday afternoon will see a Senior Gold Panning Knockout sponsored by Minelab and the Victorian Gold Panning Association,” she said.
“And if anyone is looking to take up detecting as a hobby Coiltek will be conducting detector demonstrations over the weekend.”
Today’s prospectors do find the old speck of gold or even a small specimen as they search Hard Hill over the jamboree weekend. But it’s one of the tokens that brings most excitement in the authentic gold detecting experience.
The tokens go into a competition with the winning collecting a new Minelab detector with all the technology to unearth their next special find - gold, coins, medallions, buttons and buckles overlooked by the passing decades.
Participants in the junior and open token hunts vie for generous prizes, while spectators can enjoy children’s activities, tour local attractions and test their luck with lucky draw prizes.
Entry for senior participants costs $55, which covers breakfast on both days and live entertainment, or $45 for one day. Non-participants are free.
This family-friendly event also includes prospecting and gold panning competitions for all ages and demonstrations in the art that once saw miners wash dirt in the beds of local creeks and rivers.
The weekend also has a town garage sale, live music and market stalls.
The program gets underway with breakfast on the Saturday, followed by a briefing before contestants head out to the bush to search for this year’s allocation of metal tokens.
Sunday sees children aged eight to 16 years encouraged to try their hand at finding the tokens, with prizes of three new detectors on offer.
The Jamboree has become a “must” on many prospectors’ calendars since its beginnings in 1998, both for the competition and the chance to catch up with fellow enthusiasts.
The event normally attracts 150-180 entrants for the token hunt, plus families and friends.
The major prize in the senior token hunt is a Minelab GPX 5000 detector valued at $4999 and other donations are from Coiltek, Wedderburn Tourism and regional and local businesses.